Manhole Covers Market Anticipated to Reach a Valuation of US.8 bn by 2026

Manhole covers or pit lids or access covers are used to close the openings of manholes or pits in order to prevent people and unwanted materials from falling into manholes and to avoid people from injuring themselves. Manhole covers are manufactured in a variety of shapes such as circular, rectangular, etc.. Materials that are used for manufacturing manhole covers include metals (cast iron, ductile iron, and steel), concrete (conventional concrete and steel fiber reinforced concrete), and composites (FRP/GRP and others). Metal and concrete are the most widely used materials for making manhole covers. However, manhole covers made from these materials are heavy, bulky, and result in a number of occupational injuries of the personnel involved in the installation and repair of these covers. Moreover, metal covers are often stolen in a lot of areas and sold for profit. These issues are addressed by composite manhole covers as they have a high strength-to-weight ratio and have zero scrap value. They are, therefore, the emerging type of manhole covers across the world.

Based on product, the global manhole covers market has been segmented into metal covers, concrete covers, and composite covers. Metal covers were the earliest type of manhole covers used. They were replaced by concrete covers, which addressed the issue of theft. However, they failed to reduce the incidence of occupational injuries. Composite covers address both of these problems. They are light in weight, offer superior strength, and a high strength-to-weight ratio. They are corrosion resistant and easy to install. Composite covers are made from recycled and reinforced resins that have a zero scrap value and are far less likely to be stolen as compared to metal covers. The composite covers segment is estimated to expand at a rapid pace during the forecast period.

Composite manhole covers with their superior properties are being adopted in place of metal and concrete manhole covers. With a rise in construction activities across the globe, the manhole covers market is also expanding. The demand for composite covers is especially high and is estimated to increase at a high rate in the near future.

In terms of application, the global manhole covers market has been categorized into municipal, industrial facilities, commercial facilities, utility pits, and others. Manhole covers are classified into different load classes depending on their load bearing capacity. They are used for different applications depending on the load class a particular application falls in. Areas such as airports, docks, etc. are exposed to heavy loads on the manhole covers. They use manhole covers belonging to classes E 600 or F900 that are meant for heavy loads. In terms of application, municipal is estimated to be a prominent segment of the manhole covers market globally. Utility pits is anticipated to be a rapidly expanding segment of the manhole covers market during the forecast period. Manhole covers for utility pits are required in end-use industries such as telecom, oil & gas, and chemical processing. These end-use industries are anticipated to expand during the forecast period. This, in turn, is anticipated to boost demand for manhole covers.